Arms seizure among versions of attack on police station outside Moscow

The attackers were initially armed only with axes

MOSCOW, August 18. /TASS/. An attempt to seize service arms and vengeance are among the basic versions of an attack on a patrol police station in the Moscow Region, in which two police officers were severely injured, the regional Main Investigative Department told TASS on Thursday.

"As part of investigating the criminal case into an attempt on the life of law-enforcers, the investigation has put forward several basic versions, including an attempted seizure of firearms and a household conflict or, to be more exact, a crime committed out of vengeance, for example, for the revokation of the relatives’ driving license the other day," the Moscow Region Main Investigative Department said.

Investigators are currently considering all possible versions of the incident, using operational data.

"A repeat examination of the incident site has been held, CCTVs have been taken for analysis and eye-witnesses have been questioned," the regional Main Investigative Department said.

Investigators are identifying the attackers’ route and the time of their stay in the Moscow Region, it said.

A source in law-enforcement agencies earlier said that the assailants had prepared for the attack, according to preliminary data.

The attackers were initially armed only with axes. They seized the service pistol of a police officer on duty by wounding him with an axe, after which they opened fire on policemen in the patrol station. One of the attackers was shot dead by the police while the other put up active resistance during an attempt to detain him.

The Moscow Region Main Investigative Department has opened a criminal case on counts stipulated in article 317 of the Russian Criminal Code ("An Attempt on the Life of Law-Enforcers").